Egypt releases transgender woman after 4 months in jail

An Egyptian rights group says authorities have released a transgender woman held for more than four months in connection to a call for protests.

The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms said late Tuesday that Malak el-Kashef was released earlier this week.

El-Kashef was among dozens arrested over calls for demonstrations following a Feb. 27 train crash in Cairo that killed at least 25 people.

Prosecutors say they suspect she belongs to an unnamed terrorist group, a reference to the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

The rights group says el-Kashef underwent a forced anal exam at a government hospital that amounted to torture and sexual harassment.

 

Egypt has waged a sweeping crackdown on dissent in recent years, targeting political critics as well as anyone believed to be gay or lesbian.